I've decided that every 50 posts or so, I am going to do a feature on a drummer that can't really be defined by one album (or one band). I already have my next few selected (Questlove, Josh Freese) so don't bother submitting someone to me for a while, I've got my plate full. First up is the man who actually inspired this blog. Dave Grohl.
Like him or not, Dave Grohl is King Shit of Drum Mountain*. He gets to play with whatever band he feels like (seriously, who is going to turn down Dave Grohl?), he can get any musician in the studio he wants to record with (hence why the Probot record exists) and he played in one of the most important bands in the last 25 years, Queens Of The Stone Age (HA!).
I mean think about it, one of the first records Dave Grohl played on went on to change everything within the music industry. That's a lot of pressure. Shit, my first few records are sitting in boxes in closets across Nova Scotia, I was happy to sell 100.
He came into the drumming world with some snare flams and kick drum stomps, and he has been a important and powerful figure of it ever since. So lets find out why.
*Not an actual mountain.
1993 : Nirvana - In Utero
Sure, Nevermind changed the world, but In Utero is a better record. Especially for Grohl. This album should be in the drumming hall of fame for the Scentless Apprentice beat alone. Grohl had the same fury as Nevermind, but his parts felt a little more refined and thought out. He plays with dynamics better (the shift between quiet/loud on Frances Farmer... is obviously a grunge staple, but it just sounds better when Grohl plays it).
He can hold back for Cobain's feedback freakouts (Radio Friendly Unit Shifter) and he can come right up front with powerful, well placed cymbals and tom work (Serve The Servants), and he can spastically start and stop his playing (Tourettes). Grohl was out to prove that he wasn't just another burnout Seattle musician, he had talent, he had stamina, and he had chops. You don't have to be a drummer to notice these things, but if you are a drummer, picture yourself playing these songs for the first time live, and think how euphoric it must have felt.
1995 : Foo Fighters - S/T
After Kurt Cobain died Dave Grohl could have collected his money, moved into the mountains never to be heard from again, and still been hailed as a drumming icon. Instead, he dove headfirst into making his own music. While Foo Fighters' first record isn't my favorite (that would be The Color And The Shape) it's the only one where he played every part, and that's a hell of a feat. Writing every part is one thing, playing them is another. Even with the massive task of making every part feel natural, he still managed to pull off some impressive stuff behind the kit.
One thing I notice is that he seemed to begin to incorporate his kick drum into his drum rolls a lot more. He does it in This Is A Call and Alone + Easy Target and it's something that became more prevalent in his drumming as time went on. He also gets to experiment a little more with different drumming styles on this record, For All The Cows has a swingy, jazzy beat through the verses, and Big Me was a sort of Lemonheads-ish pop rock song, no big rock out parts like the rest of the songs.
While his drumming for Foo Fighters started out as being similar to his drumming for Nirvana, he really started to carve out his own niche with further albums (The beat for Hero is a good example, or the 7/4 beat from Times Like These). If anything, Dave Grohl proved himself to be a viable songwriter as well as drummer, and even after Foo Fighters became bigger and bigger, he never stopped turning down offers to play drums.
2002 : Queens Of The Stone Age - Songs For The Deaf
Alright, now we're getting to the good shit. After proving himself as a critical and commercial success, Grohl had it made. He had sustained his popularity through the changing musical climate and he was pretty much free to do whatever he wanted, so why not just join awesome rock bands that you love?
Queens Of The Stone Age had just released Rated R, one of the best rock records to come around in the last ten years or so, and with a lot of underground buzz surrounding them, they enlisted Grohl to helm the drum kit for their third record, Songs For The Deaf.
This is where Dave really shines, his rhythms are much more robotic and precise, blending his previous angry style with a more refined textural one. I could try to explain it, but basically he just does cool shit all over this record.
His tom beat in the kick off track You Think I Ain't Worth A Dollar makes it the perfect driving song, his flam rolls in the chorus on No One Knows are crazy, and the ending to A Song For The Dead is one of the greatest drum parts I have ever heard. Dave plays like he is comfortable, as if he has been playing these songs for years.You can tell he didn't just go into this project and half ass it, he really gives the songs their own unique spin.
It's awesome that Dave Grohl took time out to record this record (and do the subsequent tour), it shows that he really enjoys playing drums, and not just making money by playing drums.
When Killing Joke re-formed in 2003 to make a record, they had the idea of getting a few of their favorite drummers to play on it. After Dave Grohl heard the material, he asked if he could just play on the whole damn thing. He refused to be paid for his performance, possibly due to the fact that Killing Joke was a big influence on him, and possibly due to the fact that Killing Joke didn't pursue legal action when Nirvana blatantly ripped off their song Eighties when they recorded Come As You Are. Maybe Dave felt like he owed them a little something.
One thing is for sure, he sure as hell didn't hold back on his playing. He keeps things straight and punchy, playing off the guitars a lot more than the bass. The half time beat he does on Total Invasion drives the song, its dark and punchy until the chorus rises up into a beat with more cymbals, but with scattered toms thrown in. Asteroid and Implant are faster, and his beats jarring (especially the seemingly off time beat in Implant). Industrial metal is a lot more percussion driven than most rock music, and Dave keeps everything going, his time is perfect. He comes out of rolls perfectly, starts and stops are on a dime and he never feels rushed, even when hes blazing along.
Dave would continue to play around with metal drumming on his Probot record, but while that record found him emulating the styles of his favorite metal bands, this album is all Grohl.
Trent Reznor has awesome taste in drummers. Josh Freese, Bill Rieflin, Ilan Rubin, whoever he puts behind the kit is willing and able. In 2004, when he seemed to cheer up a little, he recruited Dave Grohl to play on his new record. It turned out to be more of a pop record than a dark, industrial one. It showcased Reznor's arrangement style more than his other records, and the songs were a bit more upbeat (and some were even in major keys! wow!). Grohl, instead of drumming the way he did with previous metal bands held back a little and let Trent's talents shine through. That isn't to say he doesn't have his moments however.
The double kick powered song You Know What You Are? has the drums moving at a frantic pace, faster than the vocals and guitars, and then the chorus' kick in with some classic Dave Grohl rock outs.
Songs like The Collector are mid tempo, and Dave alternates between some staccato snare shots and pop rock open high hats. The Hand That Feeds has Dave playing a sort of disco-ish dance beat (kick on 1 and 3, high hats on 2 and four), something you don't hear very often from him.
The shining gem would have to be Getting Smaller, it's classic NIN, loud mechanical guitars and powerful drums. Dave throws in a little time skip every measure, and it keeps you from being able to predict his playing. Along with some killer rolls and some tom/kick drum action, Getting Smaller is still one of my favorite examples on Dave's ability. Pairing up with Reznor was one of the best things he's ever done.
Well, there you have it. This took me forever to finish, I listened to about 12 records Dave played on, and while there are still some cool records I didn't add (Probot, The Prodigy), I think these five give a good snapshot of what he is capable of. Sorry if it gets a little tedious, it's really hard to talk about the same drummer 5 different times and keep it fresh and interesting, but I didn't do too bad for my first shot at this new feature. I give myself a 70.
Out of 130.
Queens Of The Stone Age had just released Rated R, one of the best rock records to come around in the last ten years or so, and with a lot of underground buzz surrounding them, they enlisted Grohl to helm the drum kit for their third record, Songs For The Deaf.
This is where Dave really shines, his rhythms are much more robotic and precise, blending his previous angry style with a more refined textural one. I could try to explain it, but basically he just does cool shit all over this record.
His tom beat in the kick off track You Think I Ain't Worth A Dollar makes it the perfect driving song, his flam rolls in the chorus on No One Knows are crazy, and the ending to A Song For The Dead is one of the greatest drum parts I have ever heard. Dave plays like he is comfortable, as if he has been playing these songs for years.You can tell he didn't just go into this project and half ass it, he really gives the songs their own unique spin.
It's awesome that Dave Grohl took time out to record this record (and do the subsequent tour), it shows that he really enjoys playing drums, and not just making money by playing drums.
2003 : Killing Joke - S/T
When Killing Joke re-formed in 2003 to make a record, they had the idea of getting a few of their favorite drummers to play on it. After Dave Grohl heard the material, he asked if he could just play on the whole damn thing. He refused to be paid for his performance, possibly due to the fact that Killing Joke was a big influence on him, and possibly due to the fact that Killing Joke didn't pursue legal action when Nirvana blatantly ripped off their song Eighties when they recorded Come As You Are. Maybe Dave felt like he owed them a little something.
One thing is for sure, he sure as hell didn't hold back on his playing. He keeps things straight and punchy, playing off the guitars a lot more than the bass. The half time beat he does on Total Invasion drives the song, its dark and punchy until the chorus rises up into a beat with more cymbals, but with scattered toms thrown in. Asteroid and Implant are faster, and his beats jarring (especially the seemingly off time beat in Implant). Industrial metal is a lot more percussion driven than most rock music, and Dave keeps everything going, his time is perfect. He comes out of rolls perfectly, starts and stops are on a dime and he never feels rushed, even when hes blazing along.
Dave would continue to play around with metal drumming on his Probot record, but while that record found him emulating the styles of his favorite metal bands, this album is all Grohl.
2004 : Nine Inch Nails - With Teeth
Trent Reznor has awesome taste in drummers. Josh Freese, Bill Rieflin, Ilan Rubin, whoever he puts behind the kit is willing and able. In 2004, when he seemed to cheer up a little, he recruited Dave Grohl to play on his new record. It turned out to be more of a pop record than a dark, industrial one. It showcased Reznor's arrangement style more than his other records, and the songs were a bit more upbeat (and some were even in major keys! wow!). Grohl, instead of drumming the way he did with previous metal bands held back a little and let Trent's talents shine through. That isn't to say he doesn't have his moments however.
The double kick powered song You Know What You Are? has the drums moving at a frantic pace, faster than the vocals and guitars, and then the chorus' kick in with some classic Dave Grohl rock outs.
Songs like The Collector are mid tempo, and Dave alternates between some staccato snare shots and pop rock open high hats. The Hand That Feeds has Dave playing a sort of disco-ish dance beat (kick on 1 and 3, high hats on 2 and four), something you don't hear very often from him.
The shining gem would have to be Getting Smaller, it's classic NIN, loud mechanical guitars and powerful drums. Dave throws in a little time skip every measure, and it keeps you from being able to predict his playing. Along with some killer rolls and some tom/kick drum action, Getting Smaller is still one of my favorite examples on Dave's ability. Pairing up with Reznor was one of the best things he's ever done.
Well, there you have it. This took me forever to finish, I listened to about 12 records Dave played on, and while there are still some cool records I didn't add (Probot, The Prodigy), I think these five give a good snapshot of what he is capable of. Sorry if it gets a little tedious, it's really hard to talk about the same drummer 5 different times and keep it fresh and interesting, but I didn't do too bad for my first shot at this new feature. I give myself a 70.
Out of 130.
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